A need arises in pipeline inspection applications to accurately determine the position of a mobile PIG (pipeline inspection unit) at all points along the course of a pipeline network. The position data allows pipeline features to be accurately located and catalogued, as well as allowing existing faults to be precisely pinpointed for maintenance purposes. The accurate pipeline position information is also useful when compared to similar data taken at an earlier time, and provides the means of identifying unusual pipeline distortions which are developing that may require remedial maintenance action.
The use of an inertial navigation system in a pipeline surveying application has the potential to significantly enhance the accuracy of the position data. However, due to the inherent error propagation characteristics of inertial navigation systems, it is necessary to provide periodic resets to maintain the position error at a level acceptable for the desired survey accuracy. This may be accomplished by the traditional method of utilizing a series of points on the pipeline having precisely known positions which may be used to update the inertial navigation system. This generally requires that time of passage of the PIG relative to a known reference point be made observable by a secondary means, such as by the detection of an electromagnetic signal. Still another method would use the inspection data to identify specific features, such as valves, that have known positions and which may be used as a source of precise position information suitable for aiding the inertial navigation solution. These two methods are somewhat limiting for a number of reasons. In the first method, a sufficient number of points must be established that allows position fixes at a rate which maintains the inertial navigation errors at an acceptably low level. Since each reference point must be surveyed, using GPS for example, a fairly high cost is associated with the survey of the reference points. In the second method, the distribution of the known pipeline features may be inadequate to provide the position fix frequency required for the desired survey accuracy.
Another approach, which is the basis of the present invention, establishes a series of position fixes by first continuously mapping the pipeline profile using GPS, and then identifying distinctive features, such as bends, that may be sensed by the inertial navigation system to provide a sequence of natural position fix opportunities. In general, pipelines have many such features prominent enough to be used for obtaining position fixes, so the fix frequency will be sufficient to allow the inertial navigation solution accuracy to be maintained at the desired level. Furthermore, obtaining the pipeline profile map using GPS is generally possible using conventional airborne surveying techniques, thereby providing a very efficient and economical approach to pipeline surveying. The use of ground-penetrating radar will allow even buried pipelines to be precisely surveyed. For marine pipelines, doppler sonar is the natural means by which a pipeline profile may be continuously mapped over its entire length.
An inertial navigation system on board the PIG traveling through the pipeline is used to continuously compute the geographic position of the PIG. Periodic position fixes becomes available through the dynamics sensed by the inertial navigation system that are correlated to a high degree with a series of pipeline distinctive features having precisely known locations, these features having been established by a GPS survey of the pipeline profile. The position fixes allow the inertial navigation system to be updated using a Kalman Filter, thus providing the highest accuracy possible in defining the 3-dimensional position of pipeline features and faults. The approach may be implemented either in real time, or off-line using stored inertial sensor, odometer, and GPS survey data. These elements are all combined in a unique manner to achieve highly accurate PIG position at all points along the course of a pipeline.